CAT/OP/BOL/3/Add.1 violent acts carried out under the pretence of “baptizing” new prisoners (see annex VII). • Ministry of the Interior/Directorate-General of Prisons Instruction MG-DGRP No. 014/2017 was issued for the attention of all departmental prison directors and the directors of individual prisons throughout the country. The Instruction provides that disciplinary sanctions may be imposed exclusively by prison directors, subject to the provisions of articles 122 and 123 of Act No. 2298 on prison directors’ compliance with their functions regarding the imposition of disciplinary sanctions (see annex VIII). 15. Articles 122 and 123 of Act No. 2298 provide that the prison director shall have the power to impose sanctions and to suspend, terminate or replace them with more lenient sanctions, depending on the circumstances of the case, but may not delegate those tasks to subordinate officials. They also provide that sanctions shall be imposed by means of a reasoned decision, following a hearing in which the accusation is presented and the alleged offender is given the opportunity to present his or her defence. 16. This makes it clear that under Bolivian legislation (arts. 122 and 123 of Act No. 2298) all sanctions must be imposed by prison directors, who are public officials. Nevertheless, with a view not only to ensuring compliance with the current legal order, but also to making prison policy clear and comprehensive, Ministry of the Interior/Directorate General of Prisons Instruction MG-DGRP No. 014/2017 was issued, leaving no room for doubt as to the authority that should apply sanctions. III. Observation made in paragraph 20 of section III Allegations of torture and ill-treatment and impunity 17. Pursuant to article 48 (8) of Act No. 2298, the Directorate-General of Prisons, in cooperation with departmental directorates, conducts periodic inspections of all prisons throughout the country. 18. However, in response to the specific recommendation of the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture and as a matter of urgency, the Directorate-General of Prisons and the National Directorate of Prison Security issued Ministry of the Interior/DirectorateGeneral of Prisons Instruction MGDGRP No. 026/2017, which ordered all departmental prison directors and the directors of individual prisons to: (1) immediately close all cells known as “punishment cells, cages, holes, dungeons and others”; and (2) renovate individual or special cells used for the enforcement of disciplinary sanctions, in accordance with Act No. 2298, ensuring the appropriate minimum health conditions (see annex IX). 19. Without prejudice to the periodic inspections mentioned above, the DirectorateGeneral of Prisons issued Ministry of the Interior/Directorate General of Prisons Instruction MG-DGRP No. 027/2017 instructing departmental prison directors to coordinate measures with a view to the strict implementation of article 54 (1) of Act No. 2298, which reads: “Periodically inspect all prisons in the department in order to verify that they are operating correctly” (see annex X). 20. The budget of the Directorate-General of Prisons will include the economic resources necessary for the required audits in the medium- and short-term, depending on the resources available in the National Treasury, on the assumption that the conduct of this activity is a matter of necessity. IV. Observations made in paragraphs 22 and 23 of section III Allegations of torture and ill-treatment and impunity 21. Article 105 of Act No. 2298 provides that persons deprived of their liberty are able to file reports or complaints through their lawyers at any time, since visiting hours are not restricted for lawyers and the documentation and information they receive from their clients 8 GE.18-12244